Bekele Fitsum, Tefera Tamirat, Biresaw Gelila, Yohannes Tsegaye
Department of Public Health, College of Health Sciences and Medicine, Wolaita Sodo University, P.O. Box 138, Wolaita Sodo, Ethiopia.
Department of Medical Laboratory Sciences and Pathology, College of Public Health and Medical Sciences, Jimma University, P.O. Box 378, Jimma, Ethiopia.
Infect Dis Poverty. 2017 Mar 7;6(1):19. doi: 10.1186/s40249-016-0226-6.
One way that people get infected with intestinal parasites is through the consumption of contaminated vegetables and fruits. This study aimed at determining the prevalence and predictors of parasitic contamination of fruits and vegetables collected from four local markets in Arba Minch town, Southern Ethiopia.
A cross-sectional study was conducted from 1 to 21 September 2014 to determine the level of parasitic contamination of fruits and vegetables sold in Arba Minch town. A total of 360 samples of different types of fruits and vegetables were soaked in physiological saline, followed by vigorous shaking with the aid of a mechanical shaker for 15 minutes and then examined using the sedimentation concentration technique.
Out of the 360 samples examined, 196 (54.4%) were contaminated with at least one type of parasite. Ascaris lumbricoides (20.83%) was the most frequently detected parasite and Isospora belli (3.06%) was the least frequently detected one. It was also observed that decreased parasitic contamination was significantly associated with washing the products before displaying it for selling (P < 0.001).
The findings of this study provide evidence that there is a potentially high risk of acquiring parasitic infections from the consumption of raw vegetables and fruits in Arba Minch, Ethiopia. The authors believe that an effort should be made by the relevant bodies to reduce the rate of contamination of products with medically important parasites by educating the vendors and the community.
人们感染肠道寄生虫的一种途径是食用受污染的蔬菜和水果。本研究旨在确定从埃塞俄比亚南部阿巴明奇镇四个当地市场采集的水果和蔬菜中寄生虫污染的患病率及预测因素。
于2014年9月1日至21日进行了一项横断面研究，以确定阿巴明奇镇销售的水果和蔬菜的寄生虫污染水平。总共360份不同类型的水果和蔬菜样本浸泡在生理盐水中，然后借助机械振荡器剧烈摇晃15分钟，接着使用沉淀浓缩技术进行检查。
在检查的360个样本中，196个（54.4%）至少被一种寄生虫污染。蛔虫（20.83%）是最常检测到的寄生虫，贝氏等孢球虫（3.06%）是最不常检测到的。还观察到，在展示销售前清洗产品与寄生虫污染减少显著相关（P < 0.001）。
本研究结果表明，在埃塞俄比亚阿巴明奇，食用生蔬菜和水果存在感染寄生虫的潜在高风险。作者认为，相关机构应努力通过教育摊贩和社区来降低产品被具有医学重要性的寄生虫污染的比率。
